Broccolini with chickpea and tahini smash

Servings: 4
Broccolini is the happy marriage of sweet Chinese broccoli (kai lan, gai lan) stems and broccoli florets, resulting in tall trees that offer the theatre of asparagus spears for the rest of the year. They’re also versatile enough to get friendly with flavours of any cuisine you’ll throw at them, and especially love anything creamy. Here you’re teaming them with a loose hummus, otherwise known as masabacha (the ‘ch’ should feel like you’re clearing a furball), where the tinned chickpeas are smashed rather than whizzed, so you can leave the blender in the cupboard. This would be a great dish for taking to barbecues when the season comes around, because you can make the smash ahead, and give it another quick stir before serving under the broccolini.
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Ingredients 

  • 2 bunches broccolini washed and ends trimmed
  • 2 tbsp olive oil plus extra for drizzling

Chickpea and tahini smash

  • 1 tin (400g) chickpeas
  • ½ cup tahini
  • ¼ tsp aleppo pepper or mild chilli flakes plus extra for dressing
  • 1 tbsp of chardonnay or apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp maple syrup or honey
  • 1 garlic glove finely grated
  • ¼ tsp ground cumin
  • ¼ tsp sweet or smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp salt flakes
  • ¼ tsp freshly cracked pepper

Instructions 

  • Boil a kettle of water. Empty the chickpeas into the base of a colander and give them a quick rinse. Place your broccolini on top of the chickpeas, and rest the colander inside your sink. Pour over the freshly-boiled kettle to blanch them both.
  • Place your griddle pan onto a high heat or turn on your BBQ. Get either nice and hot!
  • While you wait for the griddle pan to get smoky, get onto the smash. In a wide bowl, smash the warmed chickpeas with a fork. In a large bowl, add in remaining sauce ingredients and mix together. The tahini will want to set, so to help loosen it up, add in a tablespoon or so of water and mix, adding more until it’s smooth and has a yoghurt-like consistency. Add in the crushed chickpeas, mix, taste for seasoning and adjust. A little more vinegar for tang is always welcome.
  • Once your pan or BBQ is nice and hot, coat your blanched broccolini with olive oil, season with a good pinch of salt flakes and place onto the heat. Cook until it’s got some nice char marks, but still slightly tender to the tooth in the stalk.
  • To serve, tumble the chickpea smash onto a platter, place the charred broccolini over the top, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with some more aleppo or chilli flakes and a good pinch of salt flakes. Serve immediately.

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